For two years, Paw Paw’s Medicine Cabinet has been gathering dedicated listeners who have fallen in love with this local band’s earthy, Southern-fried mix of jam and pop. Last Sunday, the group gathered a number of followers at an undisclosed location on Highway 181 for the creation of a new music video for its song “Old House,” one of several harbingers for two new albums from this local favorite.

Paw Paw’s Medicine Cabinet has been spending much of its free time on Dog River at Rick Hirsch’s Studio H20, where they have been working together on two upcoming releases, “The Great Room” and “Somebody Else’s Dream.”

The band recently released the single “Too High” on social media, a bouncing anthem that reflects the group’s sound and attitude. Lyrical flow rolls across lighthearted strums, taut rhythms and complementary keyboard work. While laptop speakers are satisfactory, these new songs are best experienced in full stereo, a testament to the warm richness conjured in Hirsch’s riverside studio.

About The Author

With the exception of two years spent at Auburn University, Steve Centanni has spent his life in Mobile County while focusing on his two passions: music and the written word. As soon as he was issued his driver’s license, Centanni began to explore the local music scene in the early ‘90s.
He filled his weekend with visits classic local venues such as the Four Strong Winds Coffee House, Vincent Van Go-Go’s and Culture Shock, all of which welcomed those who had yet to reach 18. After high school, Centanni traded Mobile for Auburn to complete his B.A. in English with an emphasis on general writing.
While at Auburn, he had the honor of studying under the Pulitzer-winning poet Natasha Trethewey, who served as the nation’s Poet Laureate in 2012 and 2014. After receiving his diploma, Centanni quickly moved back to Mobile and completed the University of South Alabama’s graduate program with a M.Ed. Eventually, he was tapped by the nationally distributed Volume Entertainment Magazine to serve as the magazine’s managing editor/senior writer.
His time with Volume allowed him to exercise his love for both music and writing. As Volume began to fade, Lagniappe recruited Centanni as their Music Writer and later their Music Editor, where he has remained for a little over a decade.
As far as his involvement in the local music scene, Centanni organized Cess Fest at the Langan Park, which was a mini-festival focused on original local music in a time when original local music was veritably taboo in Downtown Mobile. For a short time, he brought original music to Downtown Mobile as the in-house promoter for the now deceased venue Cell Block. He managed local underground powerhouse Fry Cook, until the members parted ways. Centanni has lent his bass to bands such as Keychain Pistol and The F’n A-Holes, and he toured nationally as a member of Abstract Artimus & the Torture Children.
Currently, he provides vocals for the garage blues rock outfit Johnny No. Ultimately, Centanni’s experience in the local music scene as both a participant and an observer has allowed him to witness the ever-changing persona of Mobile’s enigmatic music scene, which continues to leave him with more questions than answers.